Captain Ren’s Trip

to mars

Written by
Bel Richardson
Illustrated by
Mykyta Harets
 Why is phonics important to learn?
The English language seems like it is full of a lot of crazy pronunciations and spelling. While a small amount of
English must be rote learned due to exceptions from rules, much of it can be decoded using phonics. When you
know phonics, you are like a detective following clues to solve a mystery. In this series, we use only words that
your little reader will be able to break down into standard phonemes. This will build reading confidence while
strengthening their phonics foundation.

Is this the right level for my little reader?

If your reader can decode about 90% of the words in this book independently, this will be an appropriate platform to
begin their study of phonics. By understanding a majority of the words, a reader can use context to decode new terms. If
a reader breezes through, you might need to take them up another level. If this level is still a bit too tricky for them, get
your reader to try some of the earlier levels first. Challenges can be good, but too much too quickly could overwhelm your
reader. Take things slow and steady. Enjoy the books and the journey together!

How can I be a good learning buddy for my reader?

If you are helping somebody to read this book, there are plenty of ways that you can go about it. Do the initial exercises
together before you begin to read so that you have both experienced the isolated sounds and discussed them. If the reader
gets stuck, cover up all but the first phoneme in the word so that the sound can be isolated again. Slowly move along and
reveal more phonemes. Once they can say each individual part of the word, you can focus on blending. Say the words so
that they can hear them, and get them to repeat it out aloud several times. To consolidate knowledge after you finish a page,
talk about what happened and what is in the picture. Then, try saying some of the words on the page and see if the reader
can identify them. Get the reader doing this as well, saying words which you need to find. Above all, you should be patient.
Create a safe place to make mistakes so that the reader is willing to give things a go.

Special Words
This book has some special words that you should take your reader through before you begin. Many special words are
those that we use in day-to-day conversation. Unfortunately, a lot of their phonetic structures do not conform to rules
that your reader has learned. These words can be frustrating and confusing, but they are also a part of natural reading,
writing, and conversation.

the, of, has, to, do, two, spacesuit, so, full, there, ago, Curiosity, picture,
Earth, past, galaxies, done, used, ready, another
Say each word to your reader a few times so that they can get used to its sound. Get them to repeat it back to
you. Afterwards, see if your reader can think of any words that rhyme with this sound in order to help lock in
how to pronounce it. Finally, think of some basic sentences that use this word. For example, if the word is ‘the’
you can create basic sentences with a subject, verb, and object: “The hat is on the table.”
Ren is the captain of a spaceship.
He will fly the rocket to Mars.

Ren has work to do on the red planet.

He needs to test rocks and soil to see
if there is life on the planet.
Ren flies the ship around the moon.
It takes a long time to get to Mars.
He looks at all of the stars and thinks
about the planets that orbit them.
The rocket has arrived.
It is in Mars’ orbit with its two moons.
Ren lands the ship down on the
planet’s surface.
He leaves the ship with
a digging tool.
He is in a spacesuit.
Ren cannot breathe
the air, so he needs
an air tank on his back.
He walks far away from the ship.
Mars is full of large, rocky hills.

Scientists tell Ren of a good place

to dig.
Here are the right rocks for the test.
The scientists want to see if there
was life on Mars long ago.

Ren collects the rocks

to do tests on them.
Ren checks in on the bot that lives
on Mars. Its name is Curiosity.

The bot digs up rocks as well.

It takes a picture of Ren to send
to Earth.
It’s time to leave the red planet
and head back home.

Ren travels past all of the galaxies

and stars. He must get the rocks to
the scientists.
Captain Ren’s job is done. He tells us
all about what he saw on Mars.

The scientists think that Mars

used to have life. It used to be green
and blue like Earth!

Well done Captain Ren.

Time to get ready for another trip.
 12

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